Arctic Circle, the Utah-based restaurant chain, recently unveiled its new advertising campaign – “Mission to Pluto” – with new TV and radio commercials, an online and social media campaign including an interactive website, and in-store promotional marketing materials.

 

Developed by Love Communications, Arctic Circle’s agency for more than a decade, the new campaign features a cast of four American astronauts chosen to embark on a very long, very dangerous mission to Pluto – with the promise that Arctic Circle food would be sent to them via a supply pod on a regular basis.

 

Initial planning and research for the new campaign began last July. The brainchild of Love creatives Chip Haskell and Preston Wood, the Mission to Pluto idea became a favorite because of the potential to reach younger consumers through mediums less frequently utilized by Arctic Circle in the past, such as online and social media.

 

Haskell guided the creative, injecting his eccentric sense of humor into the four characters’ personalities, which are portrayed through an interactive website containing hours of video content and a video game, and unique social media profiles for each character.

 

In addition, more than 30 different TV ads and numerous 15-, 30-, and 60-second radio spots featuring the astronauts and Arctic Circle menu items were produced, with a new commercial set to run every week for an entire year.

 

Arctic Circle also re-branded all in-store communications materials, from coupons and table tents to trading cards and life-size cutouts of the Mission to Pluto astronauts.

 

“Arctic Circle is very excited to launch our new Mission to Pluto campaign that will be sure to capture both younger and older consumers alike,” says Gary Roberts, president of Arctic Circle Restaurants. “We made sure the campaign had a good mix of entertaining traditional content and interactive online content.”

 

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with a company who has so much confidence in what we are doing,” says Joe Evans, account director of Love Communications. “Arctic Circle backed our unconventional ideas 100 percent, from marketing to operations and every other standpoint.”